Are you criminal: Twisha's husband's chaotic surrender drama at Jabalpur court

After remaining out of sight for 10 days following the death of 33-year-old Noida woman Twisha Sharma, her husband Samarth Singh surfaced dramatically at a Jabalpur court on Friday. His face was partly concealed under a blue cap, dark sunglasses and a surgical mask, triggering chaotic scenes of shouting, jostling and courtroom confusion before police finally took him into custody.

As word spread that the absconding accused had arrived to surrender, court corridors turned into a crush of cameras, lawyers and police personnel. Journalists chased him through the premises, repeatedly shouting questions, including, “Aap criminal hain? (Are you a criminal?”) and "Kya hua tha uss din (What happened that day)" as Samarth, flanked by lawyers, tried to move through the crowd. At one point, amid the pushing and commotion, he was pressed against a wall and was heard protesting, saying, “You can’t do this.”

Twisha Sharma, a 33-year-old pregnant woman from Noida, was found hanging from the exercise rod installed on the terrace of her matrimonial home in Bhopal on May 12, with her family blaming her in-laws for dowry harassment. The Singh family claimed she struggled with drug addiction.

Samarth's surrender act took an even more dramatic turn after advocate Anurag Srivastav, representing Twisha Sharma’s family, claimed he accidentally discovered Samarth sitting inside a dark courtroom with two others, while the judge was absent from the bench.

“I opened the courtroom door and found him sitting there,” Srivastav told reporters, alleging that Samarth appeared to be moving between courtrooms instead of surrendering before the designated trial court in Bhopal.

He claimed he was pushed by Samarth’s lawyers while attempting to follow the proceedings and questioned why “a retired judge’s son” (Giribala Singh) was allegedly being protected. He insisted the Madhya Pradesh High Court had clearly directed that Samarth should surrender either before the trial court in Bhopal or before the investigating officer handling the case.

Hours earlier, Samarth’s lawyer had informed the High Court that his client was ready to surrender immediately and would withdraw his anticipatory bail plea. The High Court later allowed him to surrender before the trial court or at Katara Police Station in Bhopal and listed the matter for further hearing on Monday.

The dramatic surrender came hours after Samarth withdrew his anticipatory bail plea from a single-judge bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court headed by Justice Avanindra Kumar Singh. Confirming the development, his counsel, Jaydeep Kaurav, said Samarth – himself a lawyer – had no option left but to surrender.

Samarth had approached the High Court after a lower court rejected his pre-arrest bail application last week.

GIRIBALA SINGH UNDER THE SCANNER

Samarth's mother, Giribala Singh – a retired district and sessions judge and currently chairperson of the Bhopal Consumer Court – had earlier secured anticipatory bail from a Bhopal court.

Police had registered an FIR against Samarth and Giribala Singh under Sections 80(2), 85 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita along with provisions of the Dowry Prohibition Act.

As the investigation intensified, police announced a cash reward of Rs 30,000 for information leading to Samarth’s arrest and also moved court seeking revocation of his passport.

Meanwhile, the High Court issued notice to Giribala Singh on petitions filed separately by Twisha Sharma’s father and the state government seeking cancellation of her anticipatory bail. Justice Avanindra Kumar Singh posted the matter for hearing on May 25.

Police had also issued a third and final notice to Giribala Singh to record her statement and initiated an examination into whether she can continue in her current role as chairperson of the consumer court.

In another major development, the High Court today ordered a second post-mortem examination of Twisha Sharma to be conducted by doctors from AIIMS Delhi, allowing a plea moved by her family after a lower court had rejected the request.

During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that a second autopsy would not prejudice anyone and was necessary to ensure transparency in the high-profile case.

Twisha’s family had sought a fresh forensic examination citing discrepancies in the first post-mortem conducted at AIIMS Bhopal. The High Court directed the state government to arrange for a medical team from AIIMS Delhi to travel to Bhopal for the examination.

- Ends